HPR

Musical Theatre Defeats Vampire Soul Suckers

By Roland Finger
Staff Writer

The musical “[Title of Show]” will win over anyone who has dreamed about making stupendous art. The play speaks to a special instinct, the urge to struggle against doubts and pull it out of your ass to be creative. This is one crazy, zany musical; it’s as if “Fame” married “The Producers” while having an affair with “Scott Pilgrim vs. The World.”

This is a show about making a show. The New York Musical Theatre Festival has issued a call for submissions, and the deadline is three weeks away. Two aspiring artists, Jeff, the composer, and Hunter, the writer, dig into their creative reservoirs to produce a life-changing musical. What will their subject be? They write about themselves writing the musical they will submit for the Festival. They are willing to exploit their own talents and idiosyncrasies, as well as the ideas and voices of two contributing women, Heidi and Susan.

Adam Pankow, who plays the writer, Hunter, worried that the play might be “too cute and insidery,” but Adam’s insecurity confirms that he is perfect as the aspiring writer Hunter. The play is about doubts, fears and self-awareness to an extreme. The characters are all down and out and charming. Katherine Hanson plays Heidi, who has worked on Broadway in small roles, but she wants more. Recently, she lost out on a part because she did not fit the costume. Theatre can be cruel, but the lure of the stage still has her. Susan, played wonderfully by Caroline Schmitz, hates her day job and wants to be a serious actor. Hunter surfs the web all day, looking at porn and figuring out possible job opportunities, which is how he stumbles upon his latest obsession, The Musical Theatre Festival.

Craig Ellingson directs one hell of a show and plays the character Jeff, who quickly realizes the perks of writing oneself into a play. Many of his unfulfilled fantasies and strange ideas can take center stage. While it might sound self-indulgent, the play intriguingly flirts with ideas regarding the creative process. Jeff can release his Wonder Woman fixation and let the world know how he feels about Linda Carter.  Characters are free to pursue questions about the nature of art. Is this play for art’s sake, or is it a vehicle to make them all famous and wealthy? Will they get their own sitcom and get to meet Ellen DeGeneres? The cast kicks up their heels, jumping off chairs and cutting loose, moving to the groove brought to us by the musician and musical director extraordinaire, Julie Adams, who plays Mary.

Desperately searching for inspiration, Hunter, a very white character, ridiculously channels his inner African American identity. And after the show makes it big, Hunter frets because his mother will hear that he masturbates frequently. But Jeff comforts Hunter by saying that his mother has definitely masturbated as well, so it’s no big deal. Perhaps it runs in the family. The show has some raunchy bits and a slew of F-Bombs. But they all contribute to the play’s overall philosophical and artistic message. Every cuss word and sexual reference captures the frustration of these aspiring artists.

Katherine and Caroline are strong singers, and they bring it home on several occasions. Susan initiates the strongest number, “Die, Vampire, Die,” which by itself is worth the price of admission. The song refers to overcoming the anti-creative forces writers/performers/artists must always beat.

What drives this play? Is it the big lights, the money, the chance for a Tony, the opportunity to get recognized? It’s everything, as it should be. Much of the play has the quality of improvisational bawdy theatre at its finest because many of the lines could appear in a late-night free verse poetry jam. The show reveals the energetic free-for-all that underpins all worthwhile creative art.

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IF YOU GO:
What: “[Title of Show]: An Original Broadway Musical”
Where: Fargo-Moorhead Community Theatre
When: March 10, 11 and 12 at 7:30 p.m. and March 13 at 2 p.m.
Info: 701-235-6778